Skype for Windows Phone 8 detailed

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Skype has detailed its Skype for Windows Phone 8 app following the official launch by Microsoft on Monday.

The new feature set, which has yet to be rolled out to Windows Phone 8 handsets being used for reviews by sites like Pocket-lint, will be here in time for the consumer roll-out at the end of the week, we've been told.

"Skype for Windows Phone 8 isn't just about the design - we've built a completely new app from the ground up to be an important part of the Windows Phone experience," says Skype on the company's blog.

Those new features include an experience that is built in at the core of the WP8 operating system rather than something superficial sitting on top, as was the case in Windows Phone 7.

Promising limited battery drain, the new app enables you to receive chats and notifications for voice and video calls even if you've navigated away to another app or have your phone on lock.

"We've set out to bring Skype to Windows Phone 8 with a clean, beautiful and modern interface. When you first open the app, your most recent conversations and chats are the first thing you'll see. From there, you can pan over to your contact list or the newly added Favourites screen or see your entire contact list."

Additionally you'll now be able to see what's going on inside Skype without being in the app and Skype notifications can be added to the lock screen to appear alongside missed calls, unread emails and text messages. You can also see Skype notifications at the top of the screen when you're in other apps, so keeping up with the conversation has never been easier.

Other features include just having your Skype contacts show up in the People hub alongside other contacts from Facebook, and LinkedIn, for example.

Although Skype hasn't said when exactly the app will be available, Pocket-lint sources have hinted that it will be very, very soon.